The Mets may have landed a familiar kind of upside in Carson Wiggins, and that’s exactly the sort of draft pick fans can dream on.
Bleacher Report’s comparison for the first-rounder is a loud one: Mason Miller, though with the “lite” label attached. That alone tells you what kind of arm the Mets are dealing with. Wiggins is an Arkansas pitcher with the kind of power stuff that invites big expectations, even if the comparison comes with a qualifier.
Wiggins himself sounds willing to fit wherever the organization wants him. “I would like to be a starter if that opportunity comes to me, but I'm going to do whatever they need me to do”
- Carson Wiggins after being drafted by the Mets pic.twitter.com/tISN8D27LP
- SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) July 11, 2026
That flexibility matters, because Miller’s path offers a useful blueprint. The Athletics took Miller in the third round in 2021, and he moved fast.
After throwing just 6 innings in 2021 and 9 more in 2022, he reached Triple-A. In only 16 minor league games and 39.1 innings, he was already a major league fixture and one of the best closers in the sport.
For the Mets, the lesson isn’t to rush Wiggins into anything. Miller began as a starter, but he was used more like an opener than a true five-inning arm.
The question of whether the San Diego Padres should shift Miller into a starting role was already being discussed before the 2026 season. That kind of role debate has become common in the other direction too, with teams moving starters into relief to maximize their stuff.
The Mets know that terrain well with Clay Holmes.
Wiggins also comes with his own built-in caution flag: he’s already had Tommy John surgery. That makes a slow build feel even more natural.
A limited workload this year, at most, would make sense, with a more meaningful introduction in 2027. The safest approach is probably the simplest one - use him the way the A’s used Miller, let him start games, and worry about the innings later.
Whether Wiggins ends up starting or relieving, the arm talent comes with the usual injury risk, and maybe a little more because of the velocity he brings. But if the Mets really do have something close to a Mason Miller type, there’s no need to get fancy. Let him throw hard, let him do it one inning at a time, and sort out the rest when the time comes.
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